Snapshots

The only man I know who behaves sensibly is my tailor; he takes my measurements
anew each time he sees me. The rest go on with their old measurements and expect
me to fit them.
– George Bernard Shaw

Noticing Change

One of the hardest things to measure is change. Whenever we are not happy with
something in our life, we want to change it. But then, sometimes for years, we
look in the mirror and we can't notice the changes we go through. Only while
looking at photos from last year do we notice the changes. We are different, but
we feel the same.

Have you ever looked at photos of people from your high school reunion and
through "They look the same, but somehow different"? Gal (my husband) and I
looked at some photos of our high school reunion (which we have missed - poor
us!). Some of our friends had glasses, some were bold, some "grew sideways",
some looked older and we realised that we must look the same to them, the same
but different.

Before and After

It is the same with any change. We can only notice it when we compare the
"before" and "after". So a good way to notice change is to take “snap shots” of
our life and compare them with older ones as we go along. Whenever you want to
change something and you actively work towards it, it is a good idea to have a
recording technique. This way, achievement is measurable and easier to reach.

Feelings are the hardest to measure. People say that measuring happiness is
especially hard. Yes, it is hard, but not impossible.

The easiest and most effective way to measure the change in feelings, is to have
a journal. In order to have a good “snap shot” of before and after, it is wise
to start the journal before starting to change. Dedicating 2-3 minutes a day to
writing your thoughts, desires, successes and frustrations in a journal can give
you an excellent overview of your mindset, vocabulary and thinking patterns.
Write by hand, type and print, mark with colours, add drawings, paste stickers
or do whatever you like, just keep your impressions of each "now".

Many of our clients say that so many things changed in their thinking patterns
after 1 session that they missed some of them by not starting the journal before
coaching. After all, the greater the change, the bigger the celebration.

In education, “snap shots” are an essential tool in motivating children. Every
child’s progress is measured relative to his or her previous achievements.
Growth is the name of the game.

Parenting Workshops

Brian Tracy emphasises in his books, seminars and talks that if we are dedicated
to improvement, as small is it may seem, when compounded over a month or a year,
produces noticeable change in the results. He recommends setting daily progress
goals in several areas, which we think will lead to our desired results.

So we need a separate “snap shot” for each area of life. Divide and conquer. For
example, if you want to feel good about your work, split "work" into 5-10
sections that might influence your feeling, like: the hours of work,
relationship with boss, relationship with colleagues, level of how interest,
commuting, stress level, money/rewards, time off/flexibility, etc.

If each area seems too big and overwhelming still, break each of the sections
into smaller ones. For example: when managing stress at work, you can monitor
the number of times you ignored or deleted something. You can monitor the number
of times you delegated work, the number of times you did something important
right away and did not procrastinate, the number of times you stopped to take a
deep breath or look out the window, the length and quality of your lunch break,
etc.

After "chunking down" the challenge, but before making any changes, score each
"chunk" from 0 to 10. Ask yourself "How happy am I with my performance in this
area?"

How happy I am with the hours of work? – 7

How happy I am with the relationship with my boss? – 10 (I LOVE my boss)

This snapping technique is easy to use for comparison after making a change. All
you need to do is score each area again and compare the "before" with "after".

Remember, the changes you make should make you happy, so you will want to notice
and monitor your success. Dedicate yourself to small improvements. Every
mountain is made from tiny grains of rock and soil. Every ocean is a collection
of raindrops. As you take your steps to happiness, stop from time to time to
take a snap shot of the scenery!

Be Happy in LIFE!

Ronit

Ronit Baras is an Educator, Author, life coach and a presenter specializing
in Emotional Intelligence and the founder of the Be Happy in LIFE program